The Black Death
by adelaidybug
Summary: Claudia's extremely ill. Can the agents figure out what's wrong before it's too late? Warning: descriptions of blood, so if you're squeamish, this may not be the story for you. Part V is up!
1. Part I

**I own neither Warehouse 13, nor any of the characters. I am not making a profit from this fanfic. **

**This one's been super fun to write! Please read and review. I would love some input. Enjoy!**

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Myka awoke and wearily tossed the blankets off herself, walking to the bathroom and rather forcefully shutting the door. Reaching for her towel, she turned on the tap, waiting impatiently for it to warm. Another day of running, chasing, searching, and near-death experiences no doubt awaited her. She was tired. Maybe a break was in order. Maybe she could visit her sister and her baby. As she tried to do something with her unruly hair, she noted with surprise that Claudia was not banging on the door, demanding to be let in to do her makeup. The young redhead was in no way a diva, but Myka couldn't recall a single day on which she had seen Claudia without her thick, dark, eye makeup. Finally deciding on just leaving her hair as it was, Myka exited the bathroom, and made her way down the hall to Claudia's room.

"Claude, bathroom's open. I'm going to start breakfast." She said as she knocked on the door a few times, then left. Ambling downstairs, she bent down to pet Trailer, who wagged his tail happily, and both moved toward the kitchen.

Pete's eyes drifted open lazily, and he smelled the ever-welcome aroma of bacon, eggs, and cinnamon rolls wafting into his room. Excitedly, He flung off the blankets, and bounded down the hallway to the bathroom, expecting to have to fight his way in. Surprised, he found the door open and light off. Claudia must have been tinkering with some invention late into the night, or she would've been up by now. After seeing a man about a horse, he joined Myka downstairs, sitting at the table, and practically bouncing with excitement for breakfast.

As Myka placed a tray on the table, heaping with eggs and bacon, she noted Steve had joined Pete, but Claudia was still nowhere to be found.

"Hey, is Claudia still in bed?"

"I don't know. She wasn't up when I got up." Pete yawned.

"I'll go make sure she's up." Steve said, getting up and leaving the kitchen. Arriving at her room, he knocked on the door. "Claude? It's time to wake up." He heard a groan. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." Her voice sounded odd.

He walked in and saw her curled up on her bed, face abnormally pale, holding a tissue to her nose. The room was very dark. "Bloody nose?"

"Yah."

"You don't look so good."

"Gee, thanks."

"You feel okay?" He pressed his hand to her forehead, searching her face.

"Migraine and a stomach ache. "

Steve's brows knit together in worry. "I'm sorry."

"Plus this freakish bloody nose."

"What's so freakish about it?"

"I've only had it like ten minutes and I've gone through a gazillion tissues already. " she nodded toward the wastebasket next to her bed, which held an impressive pile of bloodied tissues.

"Yikes. "

"Yeah."

"Claudia, that's a lot of blood."

"The Niagra Falls of nosebleeds."

"Seriously, we should get you to a doctor. You shouldn't be bleeding _that _heavily."

"Jinksy, don't fuss. "

"Let me see your nose. "

"I'm fine."

"Then let me see it."

She sighed dramatically, then slowly pulled the tissue from her nose to reveal that it was indeed bleeding very rapidly. Catching a small puddle in her cupped hands, she made a face. "We good?"

"We're going to the doctor, _now." _He handed her a new tissue and a towel to wipe off her hands.

"Fine." Jinks was surprised and worried that she gave in so easily. She must really feel awful.

"Need help?"

"No, I've got it." She cleaned her hands on the towel. "Someone's gonna have fun cleaning _that _up." Slipping her legs out from under the covers, she planted them on the floor. _I don't need help. _She silently reminded herself. The redhead stood and took a step forward, stumbling. Jinks caught her shoulders and held her firmly.

"Steady."

"Okay, the Room's spinning a little bit." She said, voice wavering.

"Why don't you sit back down a minute?" Steve sounded calm, but inside, the agent was terrified. "Myka, Pete, get up here!" He shouted, trying not to sound panicked. As Claudia sat back down, she put her head in the hand not holding her nose, cradling it.

"Owww."

"What's wrong?"

"My head hurts really bad." Jinks thought he saw a few tears on the girl's cheeks.

* * *

Myka pulled a pan out of the oven, set it on a trivet on the table, and shoveled a gooey cinnamon roll onto Pete's plate.

"Oh yum. Mykes, this looks awesome."

"Thanks. They weren't even that hard. They were my great aunt's recipe. The secret is in the sauce."

"What's in-whoah."

"What? Pete, was that a vibe?"

"Yeah, a not so good one. Mykes-"

Steve's voice interjected from upstairs. "Myka, Pete, get up here!"

Myka gave Pete a panicked look, and they both bolted up the stairs.

Steve was kneeling by Claudia's bed. The girl was holding a blood-soaked tissue to the her nose.

"What's the matter?" Asked the Myka, worry etched across her face.

"Something's wrong. Claudia's sick. We need to get her to a doctor. "

"I'll start the car." Pete said, turning to leave.

"What's going on, Claudia?" Myka asked.

"Migraine... and a... bloody nose." Claudia said haltingly. She grabbed a new tissue, making a face which Myka knew could only be the girl trying to hide tears.

"Hey, it's okay." Myka said comfortingly, putting her hand on Claudia's back. "We'll get you to the doctor, and all fixed up."

"Ok."

"She also said she had a stomach ache. You ready now, Claude?" Jinks asked.

"Yeah, sure." She tried to get up again, clutching onto Steve's shoulder with the hand not holding her nose, but dark clouds billowed into her vision, making everything blurry. She squinted, trying to gain back her sight, but everything was dark, and she felt herself falling.

"Claudia!" Jinks grabbed onto the younger agent's too-thin frame, keeping her from collapsing to the ground. He picked her up, cradling her in his arms. "Come on, we've gotta get her to the hospital."

Once Jinks got in the car, Claudia still in his arms, Myka handed him a towel. He realized the girl's nose had continued to bleed profusely, leaving a stain down his shirt. He pinched the towel to her nose, hoping she wasn't losing too much blood. Pete sped down the highway. "Myka," Jinks said urgently, "Call 911. See if they can send an ambulance to meet us on the way." Myka nodded and dialed the number, telling the operator everything.

All of a sudden, Claudia started coughing violently. Opening her eyes widely, she gasped and choked for air, hands covering her mouth.

"Hey, Claude you okay?" Steve's eyes searched hers. She coughed and coughed and coughed. Finally, she quieted, and laid back in Jinksy's arms, exhausted.

"Myka," the girl said in a chillingly calm voice, staring at her blood-covered hands, "Tell the operator I'm coughing up blood."

Soon, an ambulance met them on the highway, and EMT's rushed to the car with a stretcher, lifting Claudia onto it, checking her vitals, and asking her questions.

"You said you had abdominal pain this morning?" one EMT asked.

"Yeah.." The girl said distantly, opening and closing her eyes slowly.

"Mind if I take a look?"

"No."

The EMT lifted the shirt to reveal large, dark purple bruising on the girl's abdomen.

"Her blood pressure is extremely low." another EMT said, "We need to get her to the hospital immediately."

The girl's face was ashen.

Steve held onto her hand tightly. "Claude, everything's gonna be okay. Okay?"

"Yeah, ssshhhure Jinkshy." She slurred, as her eyelids became heavy. He grabbed her hand and held it tightly.

They loaded her up in the ambulance. Jinks insisted on going with her, while Myka and Pete followed in the car.

"Why is she bleeding so heavily if her BP is so low?" One of the EMTs asked.

"Probably a clotting issue. She's not just bleeding from her nose, she's bleeding out. Everywhere." said a doctor. He gestured toward a red rash on the girl's arm. "We've got to figure out the source of the problem or she'll die in a couple of hours at most."

Claudia began coughing again, gasping and choking against the blood in her respiratory system. She was sitting up, wheezing, face contorted in pain. Her grasp on Steve's hand tightened so hard he thought she'd break it.

"Claude, breathe!"

The girl's face was turning red, then purple. She choked, as the EMT's tried to get her to breathe. Her eyes frantically pleaded for help.

"Damn it, Claudia. Breath! Do something! She's choking!" Jinks noticed her grip was loosening. "Claude, please." She was resting against the gurney now, eyes glazed over, becoming more and more still. "Claudia!"

"Sir, I'm going to need you to sit down." an EMT pushed him to a seat. The doctor and other EMT's were working on something. They were putting a tube down Claudia's throat. Then, they began sucking the blood out from her lungs. Monitors were beeping loudly.

"Her heart stopped!" One shouted. Steve tried to go back to Claudia's side, but the man was blocking his way. They were replacing the long tube for a shorter one.

"Come on, Claude. You wouldn't let me go. Now I'm not going to let you go." Jinks said from across the ambulance.

He heard the doctor's voice saying, "We can save her. I know we can. Charge the paddles."

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**Let me know what you think! Another chapter or two are on their way!**


	2. Part II

**I still own none of it. _None._ **

**Read let me know what you think or if you have any ideas to make it more awesome!**

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Myka and Pete drove in silence down the highway. All of a sudden, the buzzing noise of a Farnsworth filled the car. Both looked at each other.

"Artie." Myka said, opening her Farnsworth.

"Where the hell is everyone? Is there some sort of national holiday I've forgotten about?" Artie said, hardly looking into his farnsworth as he typed away at a computer with one hand.

"Um..." Myka was struggling to keep her composure.

"Oh... What's wrong?" he looked in her face.

"It's Claudia," she said, voice filled with tears. "She had some sort of weird bloody nose and this bruising and a headache... They said... They said she was bleeding out..."

"What? Who said that?"

"The doctor. She's in an ambulance on the way to the hospital. Pete and I are following."

"Why didn't someone tell me sooner?!"

"I don't know... I guess we forgot."

"I'm coming over there _now._"

"No, wait. It might be artifact related. You're at the Warehouse?"

"Yes. I'll check yesterday's catalogue and see what she was handling. Did she mention any artifacts?"

"No."

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"Clear!" _Thump. _The sound of the paddles hitting Claudia made Steve nauseous. "Charge to 300." "Clear!" _Thump. _"Charge again." _Thump. _Steve put his head in his hands.

"She's back."

He looked up. Just then, they arrived at the hospital. Doctors and nurses quickly surrounded the vehicle, starting to wheel Claudia away.

"Where are you taking her?"

"Sir, if you'll please wait in the waiting room, we'll let you know about her as soon as possible."

* * *

"What are you seeing on the list, Artie?" Asked Myka.

"Nothing that would cause symptoms like hers. A sarcophagus, a legendary ax, a medieval farm tool, a meditation bowl, a-"

"Wait, what was that last one?"

"A medieval farm tool? The uh-" he looked down at the list, "tool is said to have started the..." he trailed off.

"The what, Artie?"

"The Black Plague."

"That's gotta be it!" Pete said from across the car.

"Row 561a. Come on, Trailer!" he hurried out of the office, Trailer in tail. "I'll get back to you." he said as he closed his Farnsworth.

Myka called Steve next.

"Hey Steve, how is she?"

"I don't know. They wheeled her away."

"Are you doing okay?"

"Her... Her heart stopped in the ambulance... they had to shock her over and over with the paddles... I could have lost her. We might still lose her."

"Steve, you can't think like that. We have to believe if it's just an illness that she's strong enough to get through it."

"And if it's an artifact?"

"Artie had a lead. He's finding it right now. We'll be there soon, Steve. Just hang tight."

"Okay."

They hung up and Steve paced in the waiting room. He bought himself a crappy latte from the vending machine, took a sip, then threw it out. He paced for what seemed like hours. His best friend was in the hospital. The doctors didn't know if she would make it. She had been in there for so long. What could possibly be taking this long? Unless something was wrong. Maybe her heart stopped again. Or maybe she bled out right there on the gurney as they worked on her. Or maybe she was awake and terrified. She hated doctors and hospitals because of her experience at the psych ward. What if she needed him and he was out here and she was in there and he wasn't there for her?

"Steve Jinks?"

Steve whipped around. "That's me."

"Follow me, please." The nurse brought him to a hallway where a grave-looking doctor stood.

"What's wrong with her, doc?"

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**Well, what do you think? I'll post the next installment sometime in the next few days.**


	3. Part III

**Hey everyone, thanks so much for the reviews. Keep em coming! If you have any input or ideas for the story, tell me in a review. Enjoy!**

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"Mr Jinks, Claudia has a very rare, very deadly bacterial infection known as Septicemic Plague. Bacteria from the illness somehow entered her bloodstream causing sepsis. The bacteria alone can be enough to kill someone. We've started her on antibiotics, but it could be too late already. In addition, this bacterium has caused disseminated intravascular coagulation or DIC, where Claudia's clotting resources in her blood aren't working, causing her to bleed out in her nose, lungs, other organs, pretty much everywhere. We're giving her blood transfusions and have put in a chest tube to continuously drain the blood pooling in her lungs, and have cauterized her nosebleed. But I need to be honest with you, if the antibiotics don't start fighting the infection, Claudia will die within twenty minutes of blood loss. Even if the bleeding stops, she could still deal with very life-threatening complications of her sepsis."

Steve put his head in his hands. "Does she know?"

"Yes. I told her a few minutes ago."

"Isn't there anything else you can do?"

"No. All we can do is wait now and see if the antibiotics will work. She's on medications which make her a bit drowsy, but she can hear you. I would suggest you go in and see her before..."

Steve's head spun. Claudia could be dead, _dead _in twenty minutes. He walked into her room slowly. The girl had an IV with two bags on it: one with blood in it, the other some sort of medication. She had a papery hospital gown over her thin body. From underneath it, a tube was in her chest, and coming out the side of the gown, emptying way too much blood into a closed plastic vessel. Her complexion was ashen, while dark purple bruising had begun to take over everywhere, some parts of her skin nearly black.

"Hey Claude."

She nodded her head slightly, raising her IV-ridden hand. "Hey." The word stuck in her throat, then came out in a chunk. It sounded distant.

He didn't know what to say.

"Um..." This was so out of his league

"Call Artie." She grimaced and coughed a few times. Despite the draining tube, she was still coughing up droplets of blood. She winced and wiped her hand on a pile of paper towels on the table by her bed.

"Right. Okay. We'll call him." Jinks picked up his Farnsworth and called.

"What?" He asked irritatedly. "Oh, oh. Hi Steve. Is... Is she with you?" The man seemed to be driving in the Warehouse.

"Yeah. Artie, she only has like twenty minutes at the most. You need to get that artifact as soon as possible."

"Let me talk to her."

He held the device in front of the girl.

The old man's face changed a bit. He cleared his throat a couple of times. "Claudia, I'm on the way to bag that artifact. Okay?"

"Hurry" She sounded so small and fragile.

"I will, okay." He hung up.

"Claudia, how are you holding up?" Jinks asked, closing the Farnsworth.

"I'm... I'm fine. Can we call Joshua?"

"_Claude,_" He said knowingly.

"WHAT Jinksy? You want me to tell you I'm scared? Well I am. Okay? I'm so frakking scared I could just curl up and die of fright. But I'm not gonna do that. Because I can't just do that. I haven't... I haven't said goodbye yet. Because who knows if this is going to get turned around? Maybe I just caught it and it has nothing to do with the artifact. After all, it was neutralized when I was handling it. I used gloves. I used all the safety procedures. But I'm still lying here dying, and I need to talk with- with everyone and say goodbye. I need to talk to Joshua, and Myka and Pete and-" her speech gave way to a sob. "And-and I have to figure out some way to say goodbye to the Warehouse, because I'm probably leaving it even though it chose me. And I have to try not to think too hard about that fact that I'll probably be dead in a half an hour. So can we please- Please just call Joshua now?" Tears rolled down her face, on which dark splotches had begun to take over. She laid her head back and closed her eyes, looking exhausted.

"Okay." he said softly.

Steve pulled out his phone and video called Joshua.

"Claude, I'm going to take this in the hallway for a minute." He spent a while explaining everything to Joshua, and could tell the man was on the verge of a breakdown.

"We could still save her, Joshua." Steve said, not feeling very confident in what he was saying.

"Yeah, okay."

"She needs you to talk with her.."

"Okay."

Steve went back into the room and found Claudia on her side doubled over, eyes squeezed shut.

"Claude, what's wrong? Should I get a doctor?"

The girl looked up shook her head, reaching out and taking the phone from Steve.

"No. They can't help me." She said drowsily.

"Claudia." Joshua's voice was broken. "Hi."

"Hi. I just- I need you to know how much I love and care about you. And even if I'm gone-"

"No. You can't give up."

"Joshua, listen. Even if I'm gone, you need to keep going. Do awesome stuff and make a cure for cancer or whatever you're doing. But... I love you big brother. And I wanted you to know that." Her voice sounded more and more tired and quiet.

"I love you too Claude."

The girl hung up the phone, and bit her lip.

"Ow... Ow." Claudia clutched at her head with her hands, tearing at her hair.

"What's wrong, Claude?" Steve asked.

She began convulsing.

Steve ran to grab a doctor and practically dragged one into the room. The monitors were sounding an alarm as she began to seize on the bed.

Pete and Myka walked in and saw Claudia having a seizure on the bed, a nurse holding her down while a doctor yelled orders and stuck a syringe in the girl's arm. Pete's Farnsworth buzzed, and he answered it.

"Pete, I'm about to goo the artifact." Artie said.

"What's happening to her?" Steve asked

"Her brain is shutting down. She's fighting hard, but I don't think she's going to make it." the doctor said.

"Artie, hurry!" Pete yelled.

Artie turned on a hose and sprayed the neutralizer all over the artifact. There was a flair of sparks, then Artie's face again.

"Well? What's happening?"

Claudia had stopped seizing and fell limp on the bed. Her heart monitor flatlined.

"No." Steve said, face ghastly white, eyes huge. "No, Claude. You can't do this to me." Steve fell to his knees by Claudia's bedside, taking one of her limp hands in his.

Pete looked into the Farnsworth with tears in his eyes. "Artie, isn't there anything we can do?"

"Come on, Claude. Please, someone do something!" Steve yelled.

One of the medical people started chest compressions on the girl, while another asked the agents to step outside. Steve got up in a daze and exited followed by Pete and Myka.


	4. Part IV

**Thank you all for reading and your feedback! This has been such a great story to write. Enjoy.**

**I still own none of it besides the story line. _None.__  
_**

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"Steve Jinks?"

Steve bolted to a standing position. "Yes?"

"You can see Miss Donovan now." Steve sighed in relief. She was alive. He followed the nurse back to Claudia's room, where she was lying on the bed. She had a breathing tube in her nose, and still had blood and medicine going into an IV on her hand. She still looked tired.

"Hey." She said drowsily, eyes half-closed.

"Claude," he said, hurrying over to her bed and giving her a careful hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Kinda like my heart stopped twice."

"Hmm, I wonder why?"

"Beats me. So, what'd the doctor say?"

"Not much. She said she'll be back later to fill us in."

"I- I thought we were going to lose you."

"Yeah, I kinda thought so too."

He hugged her again. "I'm gonna go get Pete and Myka. They want to see you."

* * *

Later that day, the doctor came in. Steve was sitting by Claudia. Pete and Myka had gone to get food.

"I thought I'd run over this information while you're both here. You are family, right sir?" the doctor asked.

"Yes." It was basically true.

"Okay. Well, the bleeding stopped and will take some time to reabsorb. And the antibiotics cleared up the bacteria in your bloodstream, but before that happened, it made your muscles' proteins break down, which has left you very weak. Your energy level will also be pretty low for a while. We'll have an occupational therapist come up in a day or two to assess you and start you on a plan. But I'm going to have you stay on bedrest for at least a few days before you try any standing or walking."

"Seriously?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Uh, the place I live has stairs."

"Well, I'd like to keep you here on observation for at least a week anyhow."

Claudia sighed. "Fine."

* * *

A few days later, Claudia was in the physical therapy center of the hospital.

"Are you kidding me about this?" Claudia asked incredulously, staring at her occupational therapist.

"No, Claudia. You're a fall risk and very unstable on your feet. It's either this or the wheelchair you've been in for the past few days."

"But, a walker? Like an old-person, I'm-gonna-fall-and-break-a-hip-if-I-don't-use-this walker?"

"Yes. For at least a month."

"Oh geez."

"Claudia, why don't you try something for me."

"Okay...?"

"Scoot up near the edge of the bed there." she did so. "Good. Now grab my hands and try to stand up for me. Okay?"

Claudia pushed heavily on the woman's hands as she shook with effort, and lifted herself about three inches off the bench before her legs gave out, and she sat down quickly.

"If you can't even stand up, how do you expect to walk around without any support?"

Claudia swore under her breath. "Fine. Whatever."

* * *

Early one morning, the doctor came in to see Claudia.

"Okay, Claudia. I think you're ready to be discharged."

"Really?" The girl's eyes gleamed with excitement. It had been a long 8 days in the hospital and she was more than ready to go back to the B&B. Of course, she wouldn't be out on the field any time soon. She could only walk very short distances with the aid of a walker, and wasn't sure she could lift a tesla with her wasted arm muscles. But she would be home. She could tinker with projects at the B&B and sleep in her own bed.

As Steve drove that afternoon, Claudia fairly wriggled with excitement. When they arrived, Jinks hopped out and got Claudia's green walker, which she had named "Warsaw," mumbling something about the band Joy Division, out from the trunk.

"Okay, here we go, Claude. Need help?"

"Nope, no I've got it." She was lying. Grabbing the handles, she tried and tried to get herself up out of the low seat of Steve's prius, but to no avail. Her weak muscles refused the task set before them." Sighing, she looked up at Steve.

"Here," he said, grabbing her arms, "hold onto my arms." She did, and he pulled her up slowly.

She grabbed onto the walker and mumbled a thank you as she began to walk toward the door. When she got to the stairs in front of the B&B, she paused nervously.

"Hey, just take it slowly."

Claudia nodded and painfully made it up the two steps. Steve knew even such a simple task was exhausting for her. When she entered, Myka, Pete, and Artie were standing in the entryway, smiling. There was a big banner that said "WELCOME HOME CLAUDIA," and Pete presented her with a plate of cookies.

"Aw, thanks guys." Claudia said, smiling. She walked slowly over to the kitchen, where she sat down, looking rather fatigued, and ate a cookie.

"Mmm, these are good. Who made them?"

"I did. I wouldn't let either of these two near an oven." Myka said, gesturing toward Pete and Artie.

"Yeah, I don't blame you." Claudia yawned and rested her head in her hand.

"Hey Claude, wanna go take a nap?" Asked Jinksy, snatching a cookie off the plate.

"Yeah, I'm pooped."

"Well I bet so. An old person like you must get pretty tired trying to keep up with whippersnappers like us!" Pete said.

"Yeah, ha, ha, I'm stuck using a walker." the girl said, knowing she'd never hear the end of it from Pete.

Steve helped her up and she walked over to the daunting flight of stairs, staring up at them.

"Do you... want help?"

"No, it's fine Jinksy. I got this."

Steve didn't have to be a human lie detector to realize she wasn't telling the truth. She got up two steps before she started to lean backward, and he caught her back with his hands.

"You okay?"

"Yup, I'm cool."

She made it up another two before stopping again, panting with her head down and leaning heavily on the walker. "This sucks."

"I know it does."

She stood there for a few minutes before finally saying, "There is no frakking way in hell I'm making it up the rest of these stairs."

"Okay," said Steve, holding out his arms.

"Jinksy, it's okay, I-"

"For once in your life, will you just accept some help?"

The girl paused for a moment, then said "fine," and put her hands around his neck as he lifted her slight frame up under one arm and under her knees. He moved the walker aside and carried her up the stairs and to her bedroom, where he laid her gingerly on the bed.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

"No, I mean for everything. For sticking by me. And for getting me to the hospital. And just-" she had a few tears in her eyes. "I'm so glad you're my friend."

"Claudia, I'm so glad to be your friend. And I'm even more happy you're okay." He gave her a rather awkward bed-hug, but both were a bit too emotional to care. Steve straightened himself, and moved toward the door, shutting off the light.

"Sleep well, Claude."

"Thanks Jinksy."

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**So what did you think? That's as much as I can think to write for this story, unless you guys have any great ideas (let me know in reviews!) Thanks for reading and keep an eye out for future stories I may post some time very soon!**


	5. Part V

**So, someone reviewed with a fabulous idea to add onto the story! Thank you whoever you are!**

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The first day Claudia was left alone at the B&B was about a week and a half after she got home from the hospital. Pete and Myka were in Mississippi, while Steve and Artie were at the warehouse. Steve and Artie had helped her downstairs that morning and situated her at the table with several projects for her to tinker with.

"Claude, are you sure you don't want one of us to stay behind with you? It's really no problem."

"I'm _fine_, Jinksy. Just let go of your mother hen instincts for two seconds and go get some work done. I'm cool."

"Okay. Well, if you need anything, we're a Farnsworth away."

"Got it."

Claudia sat there for a good three hours before finally finishing the last project and setting it down with a satisfied sigh. Feeling her stomach grumbling, she slowly pushed herself to a standing position, using the table for support, and grabbed onto her walker. She got a container of leftover soup from the fridge, and slid it along the counter to the microwave. Once it was nuked and ready, she tried to figure out how exactly she was going to carry it to the table. If she was standing still, she could use just one hand to support herself, but if she was walking, there was just no way. Sighing, she grabbed a granola bar from the cabinet, tucked it into her back pocket, and crossed back to the table to eat it sulkily.

It was a beautiful day outside, and she decided she needed some sunshine to improve her mood. She walked over to the living room and opened the sliding glass door to the patio. As she lifted the walker over the ridges of the door track and took a few wobbly steps out, her foot caught on the door. Before she knew what was happening, she hurtled forward, taking her walker with her, and smacked her nose and head against the pavement, arms reaching out but doing nothing to break the fall. Claudia finally understood the meaning of "seeing stars."

When things came back into focus, she found herself sprawled out on the patio on top of her walker. Something warm was running down her forehead, and when she swiped at it, her hand came back bloody. Her arms and palms were badly scraped from the cement, and her nose was bleeding. She set her hand underneath herself and attempted to push herself up, but found she was too weak. She couldn't even roll to her side because the walker sides were there. Her Farnsworth and cellphone were on the kitchen table.

Artie and Steve wouldn't be back from the Warehouse till 4 or 5, and when Claudia had left the kitchen it had only been 1pm.

"Crap. Crap crap crap," she said aloud, holding her bloody nose. She was beginning to get dizzy and very drowsy. Though unsure if it was simply an afternoon crash or something to do with her head, she couldn't stop herself from falling asleep.

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**So whatdya think? Apologies for toying with your emotions.**


	6. Part VI

**I don't own Warehouse 13 or the characters, only this story. Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

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Some time later, she awoke to her name being called from inside the house. When Steve rounded the corner of the living room and saw Claudia lying there, he gasped and hurried over to her.

"Claudia, are you okay? What happened?"

"I- I don't remember," she said, bewildered. Steve helped the girl to a sitting position and examined her scraped arms and forehead. She pulled her hands up to her head and grimaced.

"Does your head hurt?"

"Yeah."

At that, despite her protests, Steve picked her up and carried her into the living room, setting her down on the couch. "I'll be right back," he said, coming back a minute later with a wet washcloth and some bandages. He carefully cleaned her arms and dressed them, then took a closer look at her head wound, dabbing at it with the cloth.

"Is your vision okay?"

"Yeah, I can see fine."

"Do you have any idea when you fell?"

It all started to come back to her. "Yeah, it was like one o'clock. I was lifting up the walker to get to the patio, and my foot caught on the door and I fell."

"You were out for four hours?" he asked incredulously.

"No, no I came to and realized there was no way I was getting up, then I started getting dizzy and sleepy- Actually, I still feel dizzy and sleepy. But yeah, after that I think I just fell asleep."

Artie came bustling into the room just then, muttering something, and saw Jinks holding a washcloth to the girl's head. "What happened?"

"It's no big deal." Claudia said quickly.

"Uh, it actually is kind of a big deal. Claudia fell and hit her head."

"What?! Why didn't you call us?"

"My Farnsworth was on the table and I was sorta stuck." She defended herself, beginning to get nauseous.

Steve sighed. "We shouldn't have left you all by yourself."

"If I hadn't tried to go outside, I would have been fine. You guys need to calm the heck down."

"Do you feel okay?" Artie asked, bushy eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah, I-uhh... Ugh." She put her hands over her mouth. "Jinksy, I need a bucket."

Steve dashed into the kitchen and came back with a plastic container just before Claudia began to throw up.

After several minutes she lifted her head and wiped tears out of her bloodshot eyes.

"We need to bring her in." Artie said.

Steve nodded and put his arms out to pick up Claudia, but she slapped his hand away.

"I can walk." she snapped.

Steve got her walker and Claudia pushed herself to her feet, shaking with effort.

"You okay?" He asked.

"I'm fine." She said through gritted teeth, walking toward the door. She stopped in the middle of the hallway and swayed a bit.

Steve put his hand on her back.

"I'm _fine _Steve! Just leave me alone!" She spit out fiercely, but she sounded so close to breaking down. Steve let her continue walking by herself, but didn't fail to notice the girl's wobbly legs and clenched jaw and knew she was exhausted and in pain.

When she got to the steps outside the house, her knees began to buckle.

"Okay I need some help," she said, voice wavering. Steve scooped her up and carried her the rest of the way to the car, setting her in gently. Tears were falling down her face. "I hate this. I hate this so much."

"Hate what?"

"I hate being weak and fragile and stupid. I hate it that you guys have to do everything for me and I hate being stuck at the B&B instead of working. And I-" she stopped and snatched the bucket from the seat next to her and started throwing up again.

"Let's go, Artie," Steve said, hopping into the back seat with Claudia.

By the end of the hour-long car ride, the girl was dry-heaving exhaustedly, tears spilling down her cheeks. Steve was rubbing her back comfortingly. After an agonizing hour-long wait in the emergency room, a doctor came and assessed her, determining that it was a moderate concussion and prescribing her some strong painkillers.

"My orders are strict rest with no physical activity, no reading, no tv, and no difficult mental work." the doctor said.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" She asked, about ready to sock the doctor in the nose.

"No, I'm not. This is serious. A concussion is a brain injury, Claudia. If you don't give it time and rest to heal, you could end up with permanent brain damage. Do you understand?"

Before Claudia had a chance to answer, she was thrown into another bout of the pukes into the pink bin a nurse had given her.

"I'll get the prescription written up. If your vomiting persists for more than a day and a half, I'd suggest coming back in for an IV." The doctor said, leaving.

"Well, wasn't he a beacon of sunshine and hope." Steve said sarcastically.

Claudia was laying on the couch listening to music loudly on her headphones in the living room, when Pete came in with a big plate of chocolate chunk fudge cookies and a glass of milk.

"Hey Claude," he said, sitting down at the end of the couch by her feet.

"Hey." She said drearily, pulling the headphones off.

"What's the matter?"

Claudia snorted sarcastically. "Well, besides the fact that I'm not allowed to do _anything,_ and everyone's hovering and I'm basically just a burden to everyone... nothing."

"You are so not a burden to everyone."

"_Pete._" she gave him a look.

"I'm serious. No one minds helping you. You're like our little sister, and we hate to see you hurting."

"I just... HATE asking for help."

"Yeah... we kinda noticed."

"Pete, for so long I was on my own. I had to do everything myself, and couldn't trust anyone. I'm not used to having people around who really care."

"Well, get used to it. We're not going anywhere. We're family now, Claude."

Myka came in just then with a large stack of books piled in her arms.

"Hey, so I know the doctor said you shouldn't read, but I thought it might be okay if I read to you."

"Um- that'd be great." She said, smiling. As Myka pulled out Orson Wells' "War of the Worlds" and began reading, Artie and Steve came in and sat down to listen. Claudia closed her eyes and listened to Myka's reading voice melodically handle the words. This was her family now. And they weren't going anywhere.

* * *

**Well, how did you like it?**


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